Fifty Shades: The Great Adventure
by gabrielladesiree
Summary: What if Christian has always been in love with Ana but now has to struggle to get Ana to fall in love with him. Everything is not as it seems and things will be difficult for them. Will Ana allow herself to jump down the rabbit hole or while she be content just sitting on the grass and only to be constantly looking down.
1. The Beginning

**The Beginning**

Do you ever get that feeling that maybe you're just living life through the motions? You get up, get breakfast, brush your teeth, take a shower, get dressed, head off, come home, eat dinner and then go to sleep. It's the same thing day in and day out. That's how Ana felt on this inevitable cloudy Sunday sitting in her apartment all by her lonesome. She was finally at her breaking point, the silence was deafening. She let out a long, exasperated sigh and finally got up off her bed and headed to her window. She looked out to the city and wondered about the lives of the people who were embarking on a leisurely stroll with their loved ones in the dreary weather. She wondered if they were truly happy people or if they simply pretended to be happy. Ana wanted to be able to say that she was truly happy and that nothing would stand in her way.

Granted, Ana did indeed have friends and she knew that if she truly wanted company on this day that she could have easily picked up her phone and made the necessary arrangements. Alas, she stepped away from the window and into her bathroom to get ready for the day. She was determined to make today different from all the others. She would no longer sit on her couch and stare at the wall in silence.

Ana carefully took a quick shower, cautious to not wet her hair. She enjoyed the messy look of her wavy hair that could only be attained from not washing it regularly. After her shower, she quickly dressed in her skinny jeans and white t-shirt, paired with her black leather jacket and matching high heels. Ana had mastered the look of being effortlessly put together. Ana tended to go for a casual look that looked a bit disheveled and simple, she called it her model look. Her makeup was barely there as she'd rather have her imperfections shine through than dissuade people into thinking she was a flawless Barbie.

Without a second glance back, she headed to the elevator and then down to the ground floor where to parking deck was. When the doors opened she hurried out and made a mad dash to her vehicle. She was eager to feel the roar beneath her feet and the power that she possessed when she held the steering wheel. Looking back in the rear view mirror, Ana was unaware that there were people watching her with their mouths agape as she sped away.


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Ana woke up with a jerk from yet another blissfully unrealistic dream where her prince charming comes and rescues her from the darkness on his white horse. She quickly sat up on her bed and threw her legs over the side and headed towards the bathroom to wash up and get ready for the day.

Ana lives a life full of privilege and honor. She has a wonderful family, a great apartment, and nice cars and officially has become the youngest CEO in the world. Thanks to her father, Raymond Steele, for passing the torch down to his daughter. In front of the world he gifted Steele Corporate Industries to his sweet daughter. The tabloids have since referred to Ana as America's princess. This is a constant reminder for Ana to remember that she always has to be on her best behavior. The pressure of being a role model doesn't bother Ana. Ana already isn't like most twenty-one year old women. She does not party or drink and she would much rather spend her Friday nights at home in her pajamas rather than going out.

Emerging from the bathroom, Ana walks into her closet to pick out her outfit. She settles for a tweed skirt, black tights, a black structured sleeveless top with an embellished collar and black pumps. Ana styled her hair into loose, smooth waves that elegantly drape her back. She kept her makeup simple but polished; she went for defined eyes and a rose colored lip.

Grabbing a bagel with cream cheese and a bottle of water, she headed towards the elevator down to the parking deck. As she exited the elevator she couldn't help but notice her neighbors. She gave them a quick wave as she passed them and headed to her car. As Ana walked, she couldn't help but wonder who those people were. They looked strangely familiar and they looked at Ana like she was an alien in an exhibit. She couldn't figure out for the life of her who they were and why they looked at her that way. They looked like they wanted to talk to her. She stopped and stared at them and then when she looked closer she could see that they were holding a gossip magazine with her picture splashed on the cover. The issue claimed to have an article that detailed all about Ana's new role as CEO while also managing to be America's princess. Ana rolled her eyes and headed to car.

This was how the week always went, day in and day out. The same routine, over and over again the only that changed were the clothes that Ana would wear. Ana was going absolutely mad with the repetition that each day held. What puzzled her most was how whenever she entered the parking deck, she always saw the same group of people. It was almost like they were waiting to see her. This puzzled Ana tremendously and she was eager to learn who exactly they were and what if anything, they wanted.

Friday night rolled around and Ana groaned with anger, "Why am I here?" she asked herself. She knew exactly why she was here. A friend had called her because he had just recently opened up a new club and wanted her opinion of it. Ana explained to him that she knew nothing of the club scene and wouldn't be much help for him but would go nonetheless.

The bass dropped the minute she walked into the club. She opted for a white floral long sleeve romper with deep v that accentuated her full breasts. She wore nude stilettos to help elongate her legs. At 5'0 she knew she was the epitome of short and she needed all the help she could get to at least make her seem taller than she actually was. Her hair was smooth with a slight bend at the ends for texture and her makeup was smokey with a nude lip.

All of a sudden someone called out to Ana, "Well, well look who decided to venture out into the world on a Friday night no less."

Ana turned around and squealed with delight, "Belinda, I'm so excited to see you! You look hot."

"Thanks, I was literally speechless when I saw you walk through the door. I think the entire club stopped and turned to look at you. You look absolutely breathtaking. If I wasn't into guys, then I would be totally all over you. " Belinda said loudly making Ana blush furiously and shuffle on her feet.

"You are too much, Belinda! Are you here alone?" Ana said.

"No, I'm not here alone; I'm here with my friends. Come, I will introduce you." Belinda grabbed Ana's arm and dragged her through the crowd to the private section of the club where her friends awaited. Belinda could tell that Ana was nervous and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze that everything would be alright. Ana smiled at her friend, grateful that she was there, clubs made her nervous. The amount of drunk, inappropriate people always had her on edge. You never know what a drunken person can be capable of.

As they approached Belinda's friends, she immediately recognized that they were the same group of people that Ana had met in the parking deck of her building. She looked at Belinda questioningly.

Belinda greeted her friends with a smile and pulled Ana to her side. "Hey guys, this is my friend, Anastasia Steele. Ana, these are my friends; Elliot, Kate, Audrey and Christian."

Ana couldn't help but notice how they were all couples. Extremely beautiful couples at that, the kind of couples you see in magazine ads for Calvin Klein. Ana held out her hand to each and every one of them. Elliot had blonde hair and blue eyes and gave her a big hug while Kate laughed and told him to put Ana down as she went over to shake Ana's hand. Kate had blonde hair with emerald green eyes. Audrey stood to shake Ana's hand rather quickly and dismissively. Ana found that odd and not very polite but she still thought Audrey was beautiful. Audrey had medium brown hair with deep brown eyes and warm, glowing skin and she was extremely tall. Ana thought she looked like a model straight off the runway. At last, she turned to Christian; he had dark grey eyes with messy brown hair with a copper tint to it. He looked mouthwateringly gorgeous. Ana then realized that she was staring it him quite rudely with her mouth open and she was probably drooling. Embarrassed Ana stood up straighter and shook his hand; she felt a spark and looked at him curiously and she pulled her hand away.

"It's nice to meet all of you. I think you all live in my building, I've seen you in the parking deck before, maybe we could…" before Ana had a chance to finish strong hands came up from behind her and covered her eyes.

"Guess who!" the deep voice said.

Ana turned around quickly with a big smile on her face and said, "It took you long enough. I was thinking you had completely forgotten all about me." She pouted.

The group of people behind Ana knew who the man was right off the bat. It was none other than business mogul, Chase Bennett, also the owner of the club that had opened tonight. They all looked confused on why Ana would choose to hang out with a person who currently held the leading title of Seattle's playboy.

Chase was Ana's best friend, they did almost everything together. He knew everything about her and she knew everything about him. Chase was a known in the public eye as a playboy and was arrogant and full of himself but with Ana he was a completely different person.

Ana turned around and proudly introduced everyone to her best friend, Chase. No one shook hands or said a word. Ana could not believe that they were able to be so rude to one another. Belinda pulled Ana aside and said, "What are you doing with him Ana? He's not a good person."

Ana looked affronted. "He's my best friend and I've known him all of my life and contrary to what the papers say, I know who he really is and I also make it a habit not to believe everything you hear." Turning back to Chase, Ana grabbed his hand and pulled him away.

He pulled her to the side in a dark corner and asked her if she was ok. Ana looked at him with sympathetic eyes and shook her head silently.

"I'm angry that they could be so judgmental towards you without even really knowing you." Ana said in a rush.

"Ana, they do know me. That is Christian Grey, CEO of Grey Enterprise Holdings, ruthless son of a bitch who hates me. He is with his brother Elliot, and those two girls with them are their fiancées." Chase sighed.

"Why would he hate you?" Ana questioned curiously. Ana was disappointed to find out that Christian was engaged. She found him quite charming and unbelievably attractive. He looked like the kind of man Ana dreamed about. He was the kind of man that would be able to sweep her off her feet and carry her into the sunset. Ana blushed at the thought and realized it was wrong to have such thoughts when she now knew that he was engaged to be married. She shook the thoughts out of her head and focused her attention back to Chase.

"The business world we live in is cut throat, you of all people should know that personally." Chase raised an eyebrow towards Ana. Ana lowered her head nodded her head in acceptance to what Chase had said. Ana knew all too well on how the business world ran and how spiteful and vengeful people can become, she's seen it firsthand.

"That it is but still, why would they hate you? I understand being business rivals and all but that was pure hate and disgust." Ana pressed continuously.

Chase looked at Ana and wanted to tell her exactly why but knew that he wouldn't be able to. He didn't want to lose his best friend over this and he knew that if he had told her the truth, he would have lost her for good and he wasn't about to have that.

Instead, he smiled and grabbed her hand and said, "Come. I want you to show you the club."

Ana looked at Chase and could see a battle being played out in his head. She knew there was something there but decided to leave it be for the time being. She knew that one day he would be ready to open up and tell her what actually had happened. With a sigh she followed him but still managed to turn back and look at the group of people she left behind and their faces were looking absolutely murderous.

 **AN:** Hey everyone! It's a pleasure to meet you and I'm so excited to finally having the courage to write my own story. This idea has been in my head ever since I first read the trilogy over a year ago. I'm new to writing stories like this so please bear with me for the time being. It's a lot harder than I thought trying to take the story that has been living inside of my head for a while and putting it into a story that someone would be willing to read. I know that my writing is not the best and for that I sincerely apologize. I strongly believe that I will get better over time. I'm very excited to begin this journey and I really hope that you all will enjoy my story.

XOXO, Gabriella


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Are you sure you can't tell me?" Ana asked Chase, batting her lashes flirtatiously. Chase laughed and kept dragging Ana around so she could see his club.

The Club was called Wicked. When you walk inside for the first time, it was as if you were being transported to another world completely. The lights pulsed to the beat of the music. The dance floor was transparent; it was as if you were floating in the air dancing on glass. The walls were white that contrasted against the dark black leather seating. The bar was massive and was placed in the middle of the club, completely enclosed. It was made out of solid maple wood surrounded by a sea of black leather stools. It was beautiful, like a work of art.

"This place is beautiful. I'm so proud of you, this is amazing." Ana gushed to Chase enthusiastically. Chase simply smiled to Ana and looked towards the people on the dance floor.

Chase was thrilled that Ana had liked it. He was even more thrilled that she came to be here with him. He knew how much she hated going to clubs and she decided to come to his. The mere thought made his chest swell up with pride and happiness. He gripped Ana's hand lovingly while Ana looked out into the crowd. She was mesmerized at the way their bodies were moving. It's as if they were in sync with the music. Ana had caught the glimpse of her friend Belinda. She was dancing in the crowd, throwing up her hands and grinding on what seemed to be one of her many admirers. Right beside her were Elliot and Christian dancing with their fiancées. Christian could feel someone staring at him and when he looked up, he saw Ana's enchanting blue eyes. Ana had to turn away, they were dancing almost as if they were having sex on the floor. Ana found it nauseating and disgusting. Christian was staring at Ana with the look of pure lust while also being all over his fiancée Audrey. Ana could feel Christian's eyes boring a massive hole into the side of Ana's face. Under the strain of his constant stare Ana blushed feverishly, she then became disgusted with herself. What kind of betrothed man would act like that, especially in front of his fiancée?

Ana needed a distraction and she knew exactly what to do. Grabbing Chase's hand she pulled him to the dance floor.

"I love this song! Will you dance with me?" Ana asked and looked at Chase expectantly. Chase was shocked and stared at Ana with his mouth open and then laughed.

"You? Dancing? I'd love to see that one." Chase managed to choke out, while trying to stop laughing.

Ana's eyes narrowed into tiny slits and she stormed off towards the dance floor. I'll show him she thought. Chase followed Ana, still laughing but also feeling bad for how he acted towards her. He didn't like the fact that he had hurt her feelings. The DJ was playing Calvin Harris's Feel So Close. Ana couldn't help but start to sing along the words to the song while also swaying her hips and running her fingers through the front of her hair. The crowd noticed that Ana was on the dance floor. They couldn't believe their eyes that she was actually on the dance floor. The tabloids portrayed her as someone who closely resembled the behavior of the Virgin Mary. The media showed her as someone always doing good deeds and the right thing and being friendly towards everyone. She donated to hundreds of charities and often volunteered at the food bank and she was always giving to those who had nothing. Ana has never been seen holding a glass of alcohol, let alone be in a club. The way she was dancing was positively sinful. She had the crowd puzzled.

Ana threw up her hands without a care in the world and started to move to the music. She was hypnotized by the beat. Completely unaware that most of the crowd had stopped dancing and were mindlessly staring at her. Chase was in awe of his best friend. He couldn't believe that she was actually dancing and especially how she was dancing. Chase looked around and noticed that other people were watching her move and he became extremely defensive. He always knew she was extremely attractive but he never felt that attraction towards her. Ana was always just a friend, someone he could hang out with and talk to without ever feeling pressured to be someone else. In that moment he decided to join her to let everyone know that she was off limits.

Ana could feel someone's hands slide up legs and over her hips. She quickly turned around and was graced with Chase's smile, she in turn smiled and turned back around and danced against him. She then noticed that a crowd of people were watching her, so she smiled, gave a slight wave and focused back on the music while twirling and throwing her arms around Chase's neck. With a laugh, she threw her head back and kept moving her body to the beat. This was it. Ana finally felt free and was ready to let loose and not care what anyone thought of her.

From the corner of Ana's eye, she saw Belinda and her friends staring at her and Chase dancing. Belinda was giving her thumbs up and cheering. Ana grinned back and turned it up a notch. It didn't pass Ana's attention that Christian was looking like he wanted to kill Chase. He was throwing daggers at him with his eyes. Ana wondered why it would even bother him, he was engaged.

Chase and Ana danced for a few more songs. The crowd still gathered around them, although now they stopped staring and started dancing alongside her. Ana turned from Chase and headed straight to the bar. She sat down on the seat and ordered her first drink. Chase came up behind her and raised his eyebrows accusingly. Ana smiled and shrugged her shoulders in a carefree manor. She was determined to let loose tonight and damn everything to hell, even if it meant her image. She didn't need the approval of others. She only needed to be alright within herself. Ana was set in her ways and she was going to have a good time and not have any regrets about it, come hell or high water. She deserved to have some inhabited fun. Was she nervous? Yes. Was she scared something bad would happen? Absolutely. Ana pushed her fear aside and decided she needed to live in the moment.

Belinda and her friends soon came up to Ana and Chase as they were being served their drinks. Belinda's eyes shot straight out of her head and went to grab the drink before Ana could. Belinda knew that Ana wasn't normally this person. She loved her friend dearly but she knew that she could not compete with Ana. She was extremely jealous of her friend and let it take over her.

"Ana! What are you doing? You don't ever drink, what's gotten into you? Have you completely lost your marbles?" Belinda accusingly asked Ana.

Ana's cheeks flushed with embarrassment as she was being chastised by her friend in front of everyone. Ana gathered herself together and looked at Belinda and quickly removed the drink from her friend's hand, got up and walked away. Ana doesn't let anyone talk to her in such ways. Ana was insulted by Belinda's comment. Ana knew she was able to take care of herself besides, it's not like she was driving home. She would never drink and drive, she knew better than that. Ana couldn't help but wonder what her friend's problem was.

Chase came up behind Ana and wrapped his arms around her waist and whispered in her ear if she was ok. Ana nodded and took a deep breath before downing her drink. She was partial towards the alcohol; she didn't care much for it at all. Yet she found herself asking Chase to get her another one. Chase hurried away to go fulfill her order and left Ana alone, standing at her table.

Belinda's friends noticed that Ana was alone and decided to approach her. Ana couldn't help but notice that Belinda no longer accompanied them. Ana was relieved at this fact but that feeling was short lived once they decided to open their mouths.

"Are you dating him? You shouldn't be with him. He will only use you for one night and throw you aside like a piece of trash." Christian sneered towards Ana.

"You could do so much better sweetie, you're actually really pretty." Audrey said, giving Ana a fake smile.

"Make sure you get tested." Elliot joked.

"Shut up, Elliot and leave her alone." Kate interjected towards Elliot, shooting Ana an apologetic look.

Ana was fuming by this point. She could not believe that they would assume that of her. Ana knew the reputation her friend held but just because he was like that didn't mean that she was as well.

"Thank you for your concerns. I will take them into consideration." Ana said, giving them a polite smile and a nod of the head before heading to find Chase.

Once Ana saw Chase, she started fuming. Concerned Chase grabbed Ana's hand and escorted her to his office. Sitting her down he looked at her expectantly, wondering what had happened during the few minutes he was gone. Once Ana quickly calmed down and Chase handed her, her drink. She downed it in one gulp. Chase looked at her expectantly.

"They think I'm your whore." Ana said, continuing. "They came up to me and told me I could do better than you and that you will only use me and that I should get tested afterwards. Do you think I'll get kicked out if I go back and slap them?" Ana commented.

Chase simply looked at Ana with a smirk and said, "It's my club, I wouldn't let throw you out. Forget them, let's have fun and get drunk."

Ana, nodding her head, stood up rather quickly swaying to the side. She was starting to feel the effects of the drinks. Chase held out his hand to balance her.

"Ok, maybe we shouldn't get drunk. It seems as though you're already there." He laughed to himself.

Grinning, Ana smoothed her dress and headed out of his office leading the way to the dance floor. They danced the night away, not leaving the club until after two. Chase had his driver, drive them both to Ana's apartment. Chase was uncomfortable leaving her this drunk. He knew that she has never consumed alcohol before and would be feeling the after effects in the morning. Ana had fallen asleep in the car, resting her head against Chase's shoulder. Once they arrived in her parking deck, Chase lifted Ana out of the car carrying her to the elevator to put her to sleep. Meanwhile, in the shadows Christian was watching them, fuming with rage.

 **AN:** EEK! I'm so thrilled you guys like my story. I got carried away and decided to start another story called Blue Eyes, in case you'd all like to check it out. It's completely different from this one but something to consider if you're interested. I have plans to work on both and I have an embarrassing amount of free time which makes it possible. Thank you so much for reading my story! It means the world to me.

 _Yocastasantiago_ : Thank you for your kind words. I strongly believe in happily ever after but at the same time, I don't want to play my hand too soon either. If you stick with me through this story, I think that you will be pleased with the outcome.

XOXO, Gabriella


	4. preview

**Preview**

Christian watched in the shadows as Chase took Ana to her apartment and decided to wait for him to return so that way he could confront him. Christian couldn't control the feelings he felt towards Ana. It was beginning to overwhelm him. He wanted to play it off as being part of the hatred he felt towards Chase but he knew better. He told himself that he was simply looking out for Ana's wellbeing. He'd hate to see her get hurt by the scum bag she called her friend.

He kept reflecting back to the moment when he saw her in the club. Christian couldn't help but think that she was extremely beautiful. It wasn't until Audrey squeezed his hand that he realized that he had been drooling. Christian tried to convince himself that he felt nothing towards Ana and just thought she was extremely attractive but he knew that wasn't the case. It would never be the case with her. He often found plenty of women attractive but he never had any desire to pursue them but that wasn't the case with Ana. He would always want her. Despite the fact that he was engaged to be married and had to honor the commitment he made to Audrey.

Christian and Audrey's relationship was a different one. Neither of them cared for each other the way a traditional couple would. They were together solely for their images and to please their parents. Audrey pretended to be deeply invested in the marriage because she knew that Christian could provide the lavish lifestyle she became accustomed to due to her father's undue influence. Christian accepted that this was his fate because he knew that he deserved it. Christian felt as though he didn't deserve good things to happen to him because whenever something good came his way, it was quickly taken away. He was always so quick to use others to get what he wanted that he didn't care about the repercussions it would lead to until he had to pay the consequences.

Christian heard the elevator ding and emerged from the shadows and stepped into Chase's line of direction. Chase grimaced at the sight of Christian before him. Chase knew that Christian hated him and wanted to destroy him, he only hoped that he wouldn't bring Ana into it.

"Do you really need to this, Christian?" Chase said through his clenched teeth.

"Yes, we do. I'm going to destroy you Chase. You took the one thing that meant more to me than anything in the entire world." Christian spat out. His body was shaking with anger.

Chase gulped at the thought. He knew that Christian would do whatever it would take. Hell, if roles were reversed he would do the same thing. Christian was able to turn a bunch of people against him with the snap of his fingers. Chase knew that Christian wouldn't tell people the real reason why though. Chase assumed that Christian would say that they shared a business arrangement that went south. Chase couldn't help but smirk at the thought of how people would react if they knew the truth. If they knew that the real reason for Christian's hatred towards him was due to a girl.

 _Not just any girl, Ana._ Chase thought.

 **AN:** EEK! I'm sorry this is like crazy short but I've been so busy this past week. I'm a nanny and I take care of two kids during the week and now with swim team everyday, I spend most of my day at the pool. Also my sister was admitted into the hospital two days ago so I've been completely absent from my computer but I'm back now and eager to get back on track. I'm going to be uploading another chapter tonight and have no fear the next one is going to be much longer. Consider this as just a little sneak peak preview to what's to come. I have an instagram if you would like to follow me, it's **gabriella_fiction** I just it and I'm so excited to start using it.


	5. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The sun shined through the window, letting Ana know that morning had arrived all too soon. Ana groaned and rolled over to her stomach, scolding herself for staying out too late last night and not being alert enough to at least pull down her blackout shades to protect her from the suns unwelcome rays. Pulling herself up and out of bed, Ana trudged to her washroom trying to decide what she was going to do with her day. While brushing her teeth, Ana was desperate to get out and get some fresh air. Her languid muscles needed to be rejuvenated desperately. Ana decided then and there that she was going hiking; she figured she could use the exercise.

Ana put on her hot pink running tank top with black running tights and her black trainers. She threw her hair up into a high pony tail and slipped on a Yankees baseball cap. Ana grabbed her canteen of water, her phone and her keys and headed out the door. Ana soon arrived at West Tiger Mountain and decided to take advantage of the clear blue skies and crisp autumn air. She desperately needed to reflect on the previous night's proceedings.

A little ways behind her was Christian taking a hike as well. He tended to hike to help clear his head and after last night he desperately needed work off his frustration. The workout he had with Bastille, did nothing to ease his anger. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, allowing the fresh air invade his senses. It was in this exact moment Christian felt truly and completely alone. He wasn't busy running a company or dealing with Audrey and his family. Here in the wilderness, he wasn't a ruthless CEO, here, he was normal here and more importantly he felt normal. From the corner of his eye he caught the sight of a pink shirt up ahead of him. It was a simple reminder that he wasn't truly alone. There was always someone, somewhere. Staring at the person ahead he felt this undeniable pull towards this person. He was curious and he found that odd, he was never curious. Christian never cared about others he didn't know. Upon closer inspection he realized that this person was a woman. He was instantly disturbed by this woman's blatant disregard for her safety. _An attractive young woman should not be walking alone. There are a number of dangers that lurk in the woods._

Christian made it his mission to at least keep tabs on her, it was the least he could do. He found it odd that he was so inclined to keep tabs on this woman. Normally he wouldn't care less. He found himself thinking more and more about this woman, whether or not she was married and had a family or if she had a boyfriend. He was beginning to become extremely disturbed by his train of thoughts. Christian realized that this woman was getting away from him and he knew that he needed to focus and pick up the pace.

Ana suddenly got an overwhelmingly electrified sensation that spread across her skin. She felt as though she was being watched. She stopped suddenly and turned around. Ana quickly lost her footing and slipped, rolling deep into the forest, screaming. She flung her arms out desperately trying to find something to hold. If she was able to grip something, she figured she could stop herself from getting hurt. While trying to figure out a plan, Ana suddenly felt two strong arms grab a hold of her. All too quickly she found herself being pulled into a man's embrace. She was grateful that someone saved her but it was soon short lived as she realized she could be in the arms of a serial killer. The trails were relatively quiet and she had managed to stray quiet far from the path. _Only serial killers stray this far from the main trail_ Ana thought. Glancing around in a panic, Ana realized that she needed to get a good look at her savior. If this man was a serial killer, she needed to get a good read on the guy that way if she survived she would be able to successfully ID the guy.

Ana let out a relatively loud gasp as she looked up and caught the gaze of the grey eyed man. _It's Christian; he saved me_ she thought dreamily. She couldn't help but stare and once she recovered her bearings, she blushed furiously because she realized she had been blatantly drooling. He stared back at her, his lips resembling a faint smirk but his eyes were big with wonder.

Christian couldn't help but stare at Ana in amazement and at a sudden loss for words. What were the odds that she was the woman he was keeping tabs on? The minute he saw the woman rolling downhill, he sprinted after her. He couldn't help but think of how badly she could be hurt. His imagination was running wild with horrific ideas and scenario. Her arm could be broken, she could be cut or even worse, she could have a concussion. Once he got a hold of her, he pulled her into his arms and instantly felt relived. He soon began checking her body for injuries examining every inch of her body, checking for cuts and broken bones. The moment he looked at her face, his heart stopped. He realized that it wasn't some stranger he was drawn to, it was Ana, _my Ana._ Christian quickly snapped out of his daze and realized that Ana could be suffering from internal injuries. Looking into her eyes he couldn't help but notice that she was staring at him, he smiled at her. He realized that Ana immediately wormed herself out of his hold and he instantly tightened his arms around her not wanting her to leave them. Coming back to his senses he let her go and he instantly felt empty and bereft of her warmth, desperately wanting to pull her back in.

 _He's married, don't be that woman_ Ana thought as she struggled to maintain her distance from Christian.

"Christian, why were you this deep in the woods?" Ana said aloud and looked at him curiously.

"I came for a hike to clear my head, I was walking behind you when I saw you fall" Christian said matter-of-factly. "Alone for that matter I might add. It's extremely dangerous out here. I shudder at the thought of what could have happened to you if I wasn't here to save you. You shouldn't be so careless Miss Steele."

"I'm fine, Mr. Grey."

He glared at her. "Coming from the woman who I just had to rescue from her impending doom. You could've been seriously injured. We should go to the hospital immediately, you could have internal bleeding."

"You can go to the hospital if you fancy; I'm going to finish my hike." She replied hastily.

"You stubborn girl."

Ana glared at Christian and pushed passed him seethingly mad as she made her way back to the main trail. Christian stood for a moment in shock at what had just happened and then quickly proceeded to follow her. He wanted to keep a close eye on her in case she wasn't alright.

"Wait up Ana, let's hike together." Christian shouted.

Ana knew that it was a bad idea but stopped anyways so he could catch up to her. Ana had a really bad feeling about this but at the same time she had butterflies. She found Christian extremely attractive and she didn't want to develop feelings for a betrothed man. _You are not being a homewrecker, this is just a friendly hike_ Ana repeated in her mind. As long as she remained impassive and neutral towards him, she figured it would be alright. They walked together in silence to the main trail. Both were consumed in their own thoughts.

Christian decided to break the silence, "So, did you have fun last night?"

"I did." She replied impassively.

"I meant what I said last night, he will use you." Christian reiterated.

Ana stopped walking and turned to look Christian directly in the eye. "Look, I don't know who you think you are but you will not speak to me that way. I do not care if there is bad blood between you and Chase but he is my best friend. If you speak negatively about him again I will personally see to taking you down. Do not mess with me, my friends or my family. Grow up and don't believe everything you read in a pathetic gossip magazine. Out of all people I thought you were better than that." Turning back she added, "You're a real jackass for thinking so poorly of me, you don't even know me."

With that, Ana turned around and tightened her pony tail and pulled the brim of her cap even lower and broke out into a run. She needed to distance herself from Christian before she did something she would later on regret. Ana felt bad for going off on him but she felt that it was necessary. _How dare he_ Ana thought.

Christian stood there dumbfounded as he watched her run away from him. He was never one to be speechless but after facing Ana's wrath he couldn't even form a coherent thought. Christian ran his fingers through his hair furiously, he was getting angry. She called him out on his behavior and he knew that she had every right to. He insulted her.

Once Christian gathered his equilibrium he realized that Ana was long gone. He began to panic, what if she got hurt again. He looked up to the sky and noticed that dark clouds were starting to roll in. _It could rain, she could get sick or worse she could get caught in a nasty storm with no protection or anyone to help her_. His mind was racing with wicked horrible thoughts. He started to take off in the direction he remembered her heading towards. From the corner of his eye he caught the sight of hot pink crouched down, leaning against a fallen tree.

 _Oh god, she's hurt_ he thought. He took off in a sprint towards her and called out her name. She didn't move. Upon a closer inspection he heard a faint sound coming from her. _She's crying, shit, I made her cry_ he was chastising himself. He could hear better the unmistakable sound of her quiet sobs and it hurt him tremendously because he knew he was responsible for her tears.

Christian crouched down to her level and he lifted her head up so that way he could look into her big clear blue eyes which were now rimmed red with tears pouring out of them. He took her into his arms and ran his hand up and down her back in soothing motion. While soothing her, he was overcome with the feeling of her smooth warm skin beneath his fingertips. _She's so beautiful_ he couldn't help but think.

Ana began to start crying even harder into his shirt. She was mumbling a garbled apology for ruining his shirt and relaxed into his embrace. The way his hands moved up and down her back gave her the chills and made her shiver. Christian instinctively wrapped his arms around her even tighter in hopes to warm her up. He could feel the temperature dropping and became worried because she didn't have a jacket. Ana was grateful for Christian's gesture she realized that he had a very nurturing side to him that he wasn't the detached person he portrayed himself to be. While resting her hand against his chest, his scent began invading her senses and he smelled heavenly. It was a heady mixture of sweat, the forest, clean linen and Christian. It was a potent combination and she desperately wished she could bottle this so she could smell it all the time. Unable to control herself she nuzzled to his chest and he tensed and then soon relaxed. Ana couldn't help but find his behavior to be rather odd. As Ana's sobs began to wind down and she wiped her tears with her hands. Christian pulled back and took her face in his hands.

"Are you ok?" Christian asked Ana, studying her face for a sign that she might be hurt physically.

Ana remained quiet and looked down to her shoes in embarrassment. She was unsure of how to respond to him.

"Hey, look at me. I'm sorry for hurting your feelings. That wasn't my intention at all." He said trying to get her to look at him so that way she could see that he was being sincere.

"Wasn't it though?" She remarked back.

Christian ran his fingers through his hair, pulling it hard.

Taking a steadying breath he said, "You're right, it was my intention."

"At least now you're being honest." Ana told him.

"I said those things to see if you were sleeping with Chase. I don't like how close you two are, it makes me jealous. I know you claim that he's your best friend but there is such a thing as friends with benefits. I just needed to know that, that wasn't the case between you too."

Ana gasped and stared Christian with her mouth open. She couldn't believe what he just said. She hadn't the faintest idea about how to handle the situation.

"I…ugh…I…what?" Ana mumbled.

"What do you mean what? I thought I just told you… "

"Shut up Christian." Ana interrupted him.

It was now Christian's turn to be speechless; no one has ever told him to shut up before. He was now becoming extremely pissed off. He opened his mouth to say something but Ana quickly cut him off.

"Let's get something straight right now. What I choose to do and who I choose to do is none of your business. You have no right to even think such things. You don't know me, you think you know me but you have no idea who I actually am. You are assuming that I'm a cheap, easy lay. Well sorry to disappoint you, sir, but I am not, I haven't even done such things. You are engaged to be married, Mr. Grey. You shouldn't have concerns over my sexual history. The fact that you are showing signs that you do, is completely disgusting. Stay the hell away from me."

Ana blazed past Christian and headed back towards the trails, she wasn't going to go home. She needed to work off the anger she felt or else she would combust. Ana couldn't believe that he told her he was jealous. If he's jealous then that meant that he liked her. It was wrong for him to like her, he was engaged. If he could easily become attracted to Ana while with Audrey then he would probably become attracted to someone else if he ended up with Ana. Ana didn't want to be with someone who was so quick to betray others.

Christian saw the internal battle that was going on in Ana's mind as she walked away. He decided not to press the issue any further but came to the realization of what she she said. _She's a virgin_ he thought. This made him happy but angry at the same time. He didn't want anyone to claim her, he instantly grew extremely possessive.

"Where are you going? The storm is coming." Christian called out to Ana's retreating figure. Ana didn't respond but he knew that she had heard him. He decided to follow her once again.

"We should start heading back before the storm hits. Do you need a ride home?" Christian said as he got closer to Ana.

"No and you can head back." Ana replied.

"I'm not leaving without you."

"Then stay, I don't care but I'm going to keep walking." Ana took off her hat and wiped the sheen sweat off her forehead.

"Here, take my water." Christian offered.

"No, thanks. I brought my own." Ana said as she showed him her water canteen that was attached to the side of her hip.

"Shouldn't you go back to your fiancée, Christian?" Ana commented emotionlessly.

"I need to be here with you. I need to make sure you're safe."

"Why do you care so much Christian? You are not my boyfriend and we're not friends. So please tell me why you keep following me." Ana pleaded to Christian.

"I'd very much like to be."

"What did you say?" Ana whispered, stopping in her tracks.


	6. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Ana stared at Christian with panicked, wide eyes.

"What did you mean, Christian?" Ana choked out.

"I'd like to be your boyfriend." Christian said very matter-of-factly.

"You're…you're…you're engaged." Ana kept stumbling over her words. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Ana didn't know whether or not if she should slap him or throw her arms around his neck and kiss the life out of him. She was learning towards the latter.

"I'm well aware of my current situation, Miss Steele." He smirked.

"You should really wipe that smirk off your face, _Mr. Grey_. You're disgusting and I would never be with someone who is acting the way you are right now." Ana's blood was beginning to boil. She couldn't understand why on Earth he was acting this way. His blatant disregard for his fiancée was sickening.

Christian's face fell the minute those words left Ana's mouth. He has wanted to be with her ever since he heard her laugh all those years ago.

 _Flashback_

" _Could you lighten up man, this movie is supposed to be really funny. I figured you could use a good laugh, you're too serious all the time, lighten up." Elliot said to Christian as they looked for their seats._

 _Christian rolled his eyes at Elliot's comment. "Shut up and let's sit here." Christian said as they both took their seats on the second row on the upper level of the movie theater._

" _So, how is GEH doing now-a-days?" Elliot questioned with a clear disinterest._

" _Great." Christian commented as he took in his surroundings. Christian didn't like to watch any form of television. He was always far too busy trying to build up his company that he never found the time for it. Plus, he thought it was a complete waste of time, there were always better things he could be doing._

 _As Christian pulled out his blackberry and scrolled through his emails, a young girl walked in and sat directly in front of Christian and Elliot. Another reason why Christian hated movie theaters, they weren't private and a very big security threat, it annoyed him greatly and made it a priority to look into close protection officer._

" _Hey man, could you put that thing away. You're constantly on it. I figured we could actually use this time to hang out and talk." Elliot murmured quietly._

 _Christian ran his fingers through his hair and let out a sigh. He knew he was being a jackass towards his brother and he was beginning to feel rather guilty for his behavior. He tucked his phone into the pocket of his sports jacket and leaned back._

" _So, what would you like to talk about?" Christian questioned._

 _Elliot grinned. "So, there's this girl that I've just recently hooked up with but she's become crazy obsessed with me. I mean, she's literally blowing up my phone every hour. You would think that this chick would be able to take a hint since I never answer. I mean for crying out loud, I left her apartment before she woke up. I thought she would've been able to take what we did for what it was; a meaningless hook up."_

 _Christian just stared at Elliot. He was never let down by the fact that his brother gossiped more than a woman._

" _Maybe you should stop giving out your number." Christian suggested absentmindedly._

 _Elliot went to open his mouth but soon realized that the movie was about to begin._

 _Christian watched the movie with complete disinterest. Getting ready to pull back out his phone that's when he heard it. The most beautiful laugh in the entire world, he had never heard anything like it before in his entire laugh. He looked around for the source, there were people everywhere. He kept hearing it over and over and it was relatively close to him. He studied the people beside him and then he heard it again. It was the young girl in front of him. He knew it then and there. She kept laughing over and over again, he was mesmerized, he had to know who she was._

 _The moment the movie ended, Christian watched as the girl grabbed her things and quickly walked out of the movie theater. The moment he lost sight of her, he recovered his equilibrium and went after her. The fact that he didn't know exactly what she looked like had him at a disadvantage. He hoped he would be able to hear it again. Elliot came up behind him and put his arm on his shoulder and looked at his brother worriedly._

" _Are you ok?" Elliot asked, studying his brother's face._

 _Christian pulled himself together and straightened up. "I'm fine, Elliot. It was a good movie, thanks for inviting me; I'll never forget it and we should do it again sometime."_

 _Elliot was shocked. His brother never thanked him for anything and hardly ever had time to hang out with him and the fact that he wanted to do it again rendered Elliot speechless._

 _Devastated that he was unable to locate the girl Christian headed out the door and that's when he heard it again. He turned his head to get a good look at the girl that had captured his attention for the past two hours. He noticed that she had long wavy brown hair and was dressed in jeans, a black leather jacket and white chucks. She was talking to a young man about Christian's age. Christian instantly became jealous and discouraged thinking that the young man was her boyfriend. The way he looked at the girl, it was obvious that he had feelings for her. Suddenly the girl turned around and looked directly at Christian. He gasped in awe at her big blue eyes, pouty lips and narrow nose. Christian thought she was the most beautiful girl in the entire world. She softened her eyes, nodded her head and smiled at Christian. He nodded back. Suddenly, the guy she was talking with wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him, a clear stake of claim. With a pained expression, Christian tore away his gaze and walked out of the building towards Elliot's car. He prayed to one day see her again. Little did he know that he would be seeing her sooner than he thought possible._

 _End of flashback_

Christian pulled his hair out and felt at a loss. He felt like he was losing Ana and it was making him extremely anxious and uneasy.

"Look, Ana, there is more to this than meets the eye. I know I'm not making any sense and I know that I'm engaged but what I'm trying to tell you is that I don't care. I want you Ana. I've wanted you for a very long time ago. I've been watching you from a distance for years, always too afraid to approach you until last night. Please, all I'm saying is to give me a chance. I'll do anything." Christian pleaded to Ana.

Ana was at a loss. She felt warm tears falling down her face. "I'm so sorry Christian. I don't know what you want me to say. I'd be lying if I stand here and say that I don't feel anything towards you but it's so wrong. You're engaged to be married Christian. You got down on one knee and asked someone to spend the rest of their life with you. That might not mean anything to you but it means everything to me. You claim you have been watching me for years, why didn't you approach me all those years ago? Maybe if you did then this could be us. We could be planning our wedding but the reality of the situation is that we're not. You obviously didn't want me enough to talk to me. You didn't pick me, you picked her and that's perfectly fine but you cannot go around saying how you want me to be yours. You apparently had many chances to make me yours but you never took advantage of them. With that in mind, no, I cannot give you a chance, Christian. You lost your chance the moment you asked someone else to marry you. You don't get to have whatever you want."

Ana's tears were pouring now. She felt as though her heart was ripped out of her chest. She thought it was the oddest feeling of the world because she has known this man for less than twenty-four hours and she had managed to allow herself to get attached so quickly and easily. Ana felt weak and disgusted with herself for letting things escalate this far. Ana was too worked up to realize that it had started raining. She wrapped her arms around herself and hurried off towards the direction of her car, desperately wanting to get home and into bed. She left Christian standing there and forced herself not to turn and look back.

Christian desperately wanted to go after Ana but held himself off. He knew that Ana was right and that he had no right to toy with her feelings in such a vulgar way. Christian let her vulnerability turn into hatred. He began getting mad because this was Chase's fault, if it wasn't for Chase this would have been them. They would be planning their wedding right now and they would be blissfully happy with each other. Christian was angry because that was the life he desperately wanted even though he knew he didn't deserve it.

Suddenly, Christian heard his phone ring. He cursed whoever was calling him. As he pulled up the phone he saw Audrey's name on his screen. He ignored her call and just stared at the phone. It was in this moment that he had made up his mind. He resolved to force himself to be with Audrey. He made her a promise and no matter what he felt, he needed to be a man and honor his promise. Christian realized that this was his fate and that there was nothing he could do about it. He was going to force himself to be miserable; he wouldn't dare drag Ana into his darkness. Ana deserved better than that. 

As Christian got closer to his car he noticed that Ana's car was still in the parking lot. For a moment he hoped that she wasn't still in the woods. It had started to thunder and there was a lot of lighting. As he got closer to the cars he saw that her car was on and that she was slumped against the steering wheel. He could see her body heaving up and down and he knew that she was crying.

Christian felt horrible for making Ana cry. He wanted to pull her out of the car and take away her pain but he realized that would never happen. He approached his car without another look in Ana's direction. He still cared about her safety and decided he wouldn't leave until she did. It was the least he could do. He wanted to drive her home but he knew she would never go for it. The storm was picking up drastically and began it began to rain rather heavily.

They both sat in their cars and stared at one another.

The moment was too much for Christian to bear. He decided to be damned with his decision and he would rather lose everything than not have Ana. He climbed out of his car and at the same time, Ana did the same thing. They stood a few feet away from each other as the rain fell upon them. Christian took two long strides and grabbed Ana's face and kissed her. He poured everything he was feeling into the kiss, as did Ana. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back with equal fervor. All too quickly, they pulled apart from one another desperately trying to catch their breath and then went back to kissing again.

Their kiss was quickly interrupted by the ringing of Christian's cell phone. He pulled it from his pocket and Audrey's name flashed across the screen. Christian resolved his emotions to answering the phone or else she would keep calling till he picked up.

"Hey baby." Christian said to Audrey.

Ana stared at Christian impassively, willing herself not to cry as she listened on to Christian's conversation. From Christian's side it seemed as though Audrey was only calling to see when Christian would be going home. _They share a home, they have a life together. You are nothing to him_ Ana thought.

Ana looked Christian over one last time and then turned to get in her car. Christian gripped her arm and shook his head no. Ana pulled out of his grasp and got into her car and drove away.


	7. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Seven missed calls, four text messages and one were the notifications on Ana's phone bright and early Sunday morning, all of which were from an unknown number. Ana sighed, instantly knowing who they belonged to; the one and only, Mr. Grey. Hesitatingly, Ana resolved herself to listening to the voicemail to confirm her suspensions about the caller. She was also extremely eager to see what he had to say to make up for what he did. She sighed as she put the phone up to her ear.

" _Ana. It's me, Christian, Christian Grey, in case you couldn't tell or didn't know. I don't know exactly what I should say to make this alright, even though I know that it will never be alright. What I did was very wrong and I'm sorry for leading you on like that. I was so caught up in the moment and allowed myself to lose control. I often find myself losing control around you. We should stay away from each other; it would be the best thing for everyone. I'm getting married and you're well, you deserve better than me. I hope you never tell anyone of what happened between us. It would ruin both of our images. I wish you the best, Christian."_

Ana listened to that voicemail over and over again. It was weird because it didn't sound like the Christian she knew. It was overly scripted and lacked any sort of emotion. Ana decided to check the text messages, maybe they were different.

*Did you make it home ok? –C*

*Are you ok? –C*

*Please let me know if you made it home ok. I'm racked with worry, answer me now, Anastasia. I will barge into your apartment downstairs if you do not respond to me within the next twenty-four hours. –C*

*Answer the damn phone.*

Ana's thoughts briefly strayed to his idle threat of him barging into her apartment. That's when it hit her, he lives upstairs. The floor directly above her, the only thing separating them was a flight of stairs and a thick slab of plaster. _So much for staying away_ Ana thought snidely to herself.

While lost in the sea of her own thoughts, she failed to realize that her phone had rung two more times both calls coming from Mr. Grey. Ana was brought out of her daze by the sound of someone banging on her door.

"Open the door, Anastasia or so help me…" a deep baritone voice exclaimed.

"Christian." Ana breathed breathlessly as if she just finished running a marathon. She opened the door even wider and gestured for Christian to come into her home.

"Can I get you anything? Have you eaten breakfast yet? I'm about to make some scrambled eggs and poached salmon, would you like some?" Ana asked fidgeting nervously and tugging her sleep shorts trying to magically make them longer.

Christian just stared at her for a moment taking in her entire ensemble and her bedhead along with the glasses she was wearing. He thought she was completely beautiful but quickly nodded his head, trying to clear his train of thoughts.

"Yes. Ugh, I mean, yes I've already ate, thank you." Christian stumbled over his words.

Ana gestured towards a stool by the breakfast bar so that way he could sit and talk to her as she made breakfast for herself. He looked around her apartment taking in all of the tiny details. This was her space, the essence of who she was as a person and Christian was eager to find out who that person was. He noted that she liked clean lines and neutral colors with the bright pop of pink throughout. It had a very homey feel to it even though it was very modernly updated and was two stories. It had a floating staircase placed in the middle of the apartment that was made out of glass rails and metal stairs. Ana had built in bookcases built to cover the walls from the ceiling to the floor. It was filled with books; there were books everywhere in the apartment. Christian figured that she apparently enjoyed reading. He got off the stool and decided to peruse her collection of books. He saw everything; classics, nonfiction, science fiction, teen fiction, motivational books and even a large collection of children's books.

"Have you read every all of these books?" Christian asked Ana while continuing to study her collection.

"No, I would love to though. I've read most of them but I haven't had time for all of them. In my perfect world I would do absolutely nothing but read books all day." Ana replied dreamily while biting her lip.

"Why don't you then?" Christian asked with a hitched breath as he caught sight of what Ana was doing.

"Easy, I have a company to run." Ana rolled her eyes at Christian's question.

"You could always sell it. I'd buy it real quick."

"I'll sell if you sell," she knew that this would effectively shut him up.

"Duly noted." Christian said as he walked back to his seat at the breakfast bar.

Christian watched as Ana cooked in silence. He was instantly angry with himself for already having breakfast. The food Ana was making smelled heavenly. It was making his mouth water.

"So, what are you doing here, Christian? I was under the impression that you wanted us to stay away from each other, yet here you are. Care to explain?" Ana said giving Christian a pointed stare while she thoroughly whisked her eggs.

"Ah, yes. I can explain." Christian said by tapping his fingers against the cool marble.

"So then why don't you? I'm getting really tired of these mind games, Christian."

Christian began to run his fingers through his hair, relatively quickly and roughly. Seeing as he was desperately trying to pull out his hair.

 _This man is going to go bald by the time he's thirty_ Ana thought haughtily.

"I can't get you out of my head Ana." Christian said sucking in a deep breath. "I've been trying. Yes, I know it hasn't even been twelve hours and I'm failing drastically but I need to be around you, Ana. If I'm not then I don't know what to do with myself. I didn't get any sleep last night because I was so worried about you. I drove around the entire city of Seattle searching for your car and once I got into Escala's parking garage I began to panic even more when I noticed it wasn't there. I thought something had happened to you and you had ended up on the side of the road. I was going to track your phone but then I acted against it. I didn't want to scare you off or have you thinking that I was some crazy, obsessed stalker." Christian said in one quick breath.

Ana stared at Christian dumbfounded and annoyed. "I switched my car." Ana explained as if it was the most obvious answer.

"What?" Christian asked, clearly confused.

"I have multiple cars that I keep parked inside my father's garage. I wanted to drive something different so I switched cars." Ana replied to Christian with a shrug, "That's why you didn't see my car. You were looking for the wrong one. I've been home the entire time." She added quietly.

"Oh but that doesn't explain why you didn't answer my calls. Were you ignoring me?" Christian's temper was rising at the thought of her being home alone and clearly avoiding him like the plague. He had himself convinced that Ana went to bar, meet a strange man and let him take her back to his place, where she allowed herself to be with him, fully, all night long. He was relived at the thought that, that wasn't the case. Christian was also pissed at himself for letting his active imagination get the best of him.

"No, yes, no, I was asleep. I just checked my phone this morning." Ana said as she placed the cooked food on her plate and then went to take a seat beside Christian.

"Would you like some?" Ana offered once again.

"No, thank you."

"What about something to drink?"

Christian sighed, "Sure, a glass of water would be nice."

Getting up, Ana poured two glasses of water and took them to the breakfast bar and placed one in front of her and the other in front of Christian. Ana then went on to begin eating her food.

"You never answered my question," she murmured. "What you are you doing here?"

"I've been doing some thinking this morning. Hear me out first before you interrupt." Christian said while giving Ana a heated stare.

Ana nodded in accord.

"Since you can't be what I want you to be…"

"What you want me to be is a completely ridiculous idea. I am not a homewrecker, Christian. You need to rephrase that sentence to being that I won't be what you want me to be," Ana ranted.

"Ana." Christian warned, "Be quiet and let me finish."

Ana went through the motions of zipping her lips shut and locking them with a key. Christian held his hand out expectantly, waiting for Ana to drop the key into the palm of his hand. Ana rolled her eyes and grunted while reluctantly surrendering the key. Christian smiled a rueful smile, making Ana's mood significantly lighten.

"As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted," Christian said with a grin. "Since you won't be what I want you to be, I have a new offer for you. What if were to become friends? I mean we're both in the business world. You're pretty new to it to be honest. Also, you're a young woman. People will try and take advantage of you and if we're friends I could offer you advice and help you out during those situations. So what do you think? That way I can at least still be apart of your life and we can even hang out together."

Christian held his breath as he waited for Ana's answer. She just stared at him, her face impassive. She had such a good poker face that Christian found himself thinking that if she accepted his offer he was going to ask her to play a game of poker sometime. He felt that she would be a great opponent and she is one of the few who would actually be able to challenge him.

"No." Ana had finally said a few moments later.

"No?" Christian said with furrowed brows.

"No," Ana said again. "No, I will not take advice from you. I am a grown woman and while I'm new to the business world in the sense of being an actual public figure; I've actually been around the world of mergers and acquisitions my entire life. I'm a badass, Mr. Grey. I don't take anything from anyone and I'm ruthless. I reckon that I'd be able to give even you a run for your money." Ana elaborated with a smile.

"I don't doubt that for a second, Miss Steele. So what do you say about being friends then?" A surge of hope swelled inside Christian's chest.

Ana studied Christian's face for a long time. She could clearly see the anxiety that he was poorly concealing. She decided to ease his worries.

"Sure, we can be friends."

Christian breathed a sigh of relief and hugged Ana tightly. She wrapped her arms around his back and squeezed. Christian became rigid and pulled himself out of her grasp. Ana stared at Christian and gave him a suspicious look while successfully asking him what was wrong with her facial expression. He shook his head no and just continued to stare at Ana in wonder. Ana finally decided to give up his weird behavior and went back to eating her now cold breakfast.

"So, what are you doing today, friend?" Christian grinned.

"Boat racing," Ana replied quickly.

"What's that?" Christian's curiosity was piqued.

"I take model boats to the park and race them."

"People do that?"

Ana looked at Christian and she could tell that he looked like a little kid on Christmas. He was clearly extremely excited over the thought of people racing toy boats in a pond.

"Yes. It's quite enjoyable and one of my favorite things to do. Would you care to join me today, friend?"

It took everything for Christian not to jump out of his seat, "Yes." He said trying to sound calm and collected.

"I don't reckon that you have a boat so I'll let you borrow one of mine for today. I'll let you pick first" Ana winked.

"Thanks. I'm just going to run upstairs to change and let Audrey know." Christian said as he left.

 _Great_ Ana thought to herself sarcastically, _this is going to go swimmingly well._

The day actually ended up going extremely well. They both had a fantastic time and Christian was thrilled at the fact that this was thing a lot of people did. He ended up losing the first race but winning all of the others. Afterwards, Christian and Ana decided to go get ice cream and they just sat around and talked about everything and anything. He voiced that he wanted to do this every weekend and when he asked Ana if they could, Ana surprised him by telling him that she did. He couldn't believe that she was into stuff like this.

"This is so cool." Christian kept telling Ana over and over when they were racing their boats.

Ana was relieved at the fact that it was so easy being friends with Christian. It felt effortless. She was thrilled that she hadn't had any romantic feelings towards him the entire day. It was as if they're lovers quarrel had never happened. She finally felt as though she could handle being his friend and only his friend.

Ana was often mesmerized by Christian's boyish smile seeing as he had it plastered on his face all day long. She was proud that something so simple was able to acquire such a positive reaction from Mr. Solemn, himself. Ana went to bed that Sunday feeling rejuvenated and hopeful. She felt as though everything was finally under control and she knew that she was going to be going to bed with peaceful thoughts.

 **AN:** I have three questions that I would like for someone to answer.

1\. Would you rather I post in the morning, afternoon or late evening?

2\. Would you prefer if I post daily with shorter chapters or every other day with longer chapters?

3\. Are you liking the progression of this story?

Thank you and I hope to hear from you soon :)

XOXO, Gabriella


	8. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Christian entered his apartment shortly after making sure Ana arrived safely inside her apartment. Upon entering the penthouse, Christian headed straight for his study and poured himself a glass of bourbon. Audrey had heard the chime of the elevator alerting her that Christian was home. She resided herself to standing in the door way of his study and watched him as he gulped down his drink in haste.

"I take it that it didn't go so well?" Audrey asked quietly.

"No, it went fine. She decided that we could be friends. It's a win, win for everybody." Christian mumbled.

"I keep telling you that we should call it off, Christian. I'm over this and I'm especially over your constant brooding and mood swings. It's driving me crazy, I swear, you're worse than a woman. I'm finally reaching my breaking point. I can pretend that I'm in love with you all I want but at the end of the day I do not want you just as much as you don't want me. At least I can keep my emotions in check, unlike you." Audrey claimed throwing Christian a pointed look. "I'm just as unhappy, if not more actually. A girl dreams about her wedding day and marrying the man of her dreams. You are not him. I mean who gives a shit as to what our parents want for us. You want to be with Ana, you've always wanted to be with Ana and I just want to live my life lavishly without baggage. I'm no where near ready to be tied down yet. There's still so many fish in the sea and I haven't had my fill of them yet. I mean come on, you and I have never even had sex. I haven't even felt a desire to, no offense. If this was an actual relationship that would never fly with me but I just feel so bad for you. You're life is shit, Christian, it's always been shit." Audrey ranted while throwing herself dramatically against the oversized arm chair in Christian's office.

"I knew that when our parents began to pressure us to get married it was only because they thought we would die alone. I don't know about you, Christian but I'm tired of pretending. It's exhausting and if this keeps up I'm going to have to look into Botox and I'm still too young for that." Audrey continued, playing absentmindedly with her engagement ring.

Christian just stared at her silently, lost in his own thoughts. Everything Audrey was saying was completely true. She was giving him the out he's been dreaming of from the moment he agreed to marrying Audrey to pacify his parents. He never wanted to be tied down to Audrey, hell she annoys the shit out of him. He wanted to be rid of her the moment he met her. Christian could remember clear as day when his parents came up with that preposterous idea he instantly thought of Ana and how he would lose all chance of ever being with her.

 _Flashback_

 _"Please don't make me do this," Christian pleaded to his parents._

 _"We're not making you do anything," Christian's father voiced back. "We're merely suggesting an idea that you consider."_

 _"Christian, darling. We only want what's best for you. Audrey seems like such a lovely girl and it would make both me and your father extremely happy." Grace said sincerely._

 _"I don't love her," Christian mumbled._

 _"You could love her in time." Carrick said with the wave of his hand._

 _"No, I love someone else," Christian reiterated._

 _"Who, darling?" Grace's ears perked up at Christian's confession._

 _"It doesn't matter, she won't be with me." Christian said quickly, effectively dismissing his mother. "Fine, I'll do it."_

 _End of flashback_

"I feel like I need to honor the promise I made you and my parents." Christian tried to reason with Audrey.

Audrey huffed in annoyance and flipped her hair. "Christian, I'm going to be completely honest with you. I never saw us getting married. I only said yes to get both of our parents off our backs. You weren't the only getting pressured. I was actually planning on leaving you at the altar." She admits.

Christian laughed.

"You know, Christian that is the first time I have ever heard you laugh. That is beyond wrong." Audrey said smiling.

"Can I ask you something?" Audrey asked hesitantly while wringing her fingers together.

"Sure."

"Why aren't you with her?" Audrey became quiet. She often wondered what happened that stopped him from pursuing her. Audrey knew that Christian had been in love with her for years but never acted on it. She was always curious as to why.

"Chase Blakely." Christian said through gritted teeth.

"That's all because of Ana?" Audrey exclaimed while jumping out of her chair but sat quickly back down noting Christian's anguish. "Sorry I didn't mean to pry."

"Didn't you though?" Christian retorted.

"I was merely curious, Christian. Now let us move on to bigger and better things concerning our ending engagement," Audrey said enthusiastically. She was thrilled to finally be free of this massive lie that has been running her life.

"Yes, lets." Christian said clearly amused by Audrey's blatant enthusiasm. He noted with humorous eyes as he watched her grab a note pad and a pencil to take notes. She looked as if she was a college student, eager to take notes for an upcoming final. He lifted an eyebrow at her as she stared at him eagerly with a massive grin on her face.

"Consider it a contract," she said with a wink.

The gesture made Christian tense immediately, "Proceed Miss Hamilton."

"Well, I think that we should sit down with our parents and break the news to them first. I don't think that they will be happy to hear about it in the tabloids." Christian immediately nodded his head in agreement. "We can either tell them together or separately."

"Together, that way they know we are both on the same page and mean business. It will help show that there is no bad blood being spilt," Christian quickly commented.

"I agree. Together it is." Putting her pencil down, she looked Christian straight in the eye as if she was sizing him up before she decided to continue. "On the off chance that my parents decide to cut me off, will you still support me? I mean I have grown accustomed to this lavish lifestyle." Audrey added while putting her feet up on the coffee table. "You know it's going to be so hard to let it all go. I was thinking of starting fresh and moving to Australia. It's so beautiful there and Australian men are to die for plus it will give me a great chance to escape the press for a while."

"Fine, will two million be enough?" Christian offered looking utterly bored. This was what everything with Audrey came down to, money. She was greedy and loved to be spoiled, this little trait annoyed Christian tremendously.

"Yes, that should be plenty." Audrey squealed clapping her hands together excitedly.

"Anything else to add?"

"Nope, I'm good. Thank you, Christian, this means the world to me! I will have my stuff moved out of my room bright and early tomorrow morning. Thank you for doing this for me. I do hope everything works out for you, Christian. I mean, I hope you get the girl." Audrey adds cautiously **.**

"Me too," Christian sighs. "Well Audrey, it's been a pleasure and we will meet tomorrow to break the news to our parents over lunch."

Audrey nodded in agreement and left Christian alone in his study as she skipped to her room to start searching for new homes in Australia. She was beyond happy to be rid of this life and go somewhere warm and sunny.

Christian also felt significantly lighter after his discussion with Audrey over their situation. He actually felt hopeful for his future. He knew that he couldn't be with her straight away and that he had a lot to tell her but he was hopeful that she would eventually become his over time. Christian headed to his room with a big smile on his face, eager for what tomorrow will bring him.

 **AN:**

Sorry this is so short but I wanted to get it out there for you all because you guys blew me away with your kind responses in regards to my story. You all inspire me to write more. I originally wasn't going to break Audrey and Christian up so soon but I have so much I want to write about that I figured it would be easier to get it out of the way now rather than drag it on. I hope I didn't disappoint!

In other news, I will now be uploading every other day with longer chapters. I'm also thinking about alternating weeks so that way I can focus on both of my stories at the same. Like one week this story and the following week be blue eyes and vice versa. Let me know if you all like that idea because if not I won't do it.

I'll talk to you all again on Thursday! :)

XOXO, Gabriella


	9. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Ana woke up extremely early for a normal Monday morning. She still had two hours until she usually woke up and got ready for work. Ana felt completely out of sorts as it was only four a.m. and she was awake and unable to go back to sleep. She headed to her washroom to brush her teeth and then went into her closet to pull out her work out gear, she figured it was as good a time as any to get a thorough work out in.

Ana went into her kitchen and picked up a banana, a large bottle of water and her workout gear and headed to the gym that was located in the basement. The elevator arrived quickly after she pressed the button and inside held the extremely elusive, Christian Grey. He gave Ana a quick smile and moved to the side to make room from her. Ana nodded her head appreciatively and went on to begin peeling and eating her banana. The atmosphere between them was thick and the electricity was pulsing through Ana's veins. If she wasn't so focused on taking small bites and thoroughly chewing her banana, she would be shaking like a leaf.

Christian turned to watch Ana humorously eat her banana. He woke up this morning feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. The only thing he could attribute it to was the fact that things were over with Audrey and he was finally coming clean to his parents today and the fact that there was still hope that he could possibly be with Ana. The fact that she was here with him in the elevator heading down to the gym only solidified that feeling. If someone told him that it was fate he would've readily agreed.

Upon their arrival to the gym, Christian held out his hand in a gesture of ladies first. It wasn't until Ana walked in front of him did he realize what she was wearing. Ana was dressed in a black sport bra with a jacket overtop, completely unzipped and a tight pair of workout shorts that accentuated her ass. He couldn't stop staring at her as she walked away from him. He was very turned on at the sight. He then gathered his wits and realized that they were not the only ones in the gym and the people who were in the gym had all of their eyes trained on Ana as she took off her jacket and hopped on the treadmill. He became extremely jealous and felt the need to mark her in some way as his so that the other men would back off. Christian resolved to just using to the treadmill beside her so he could at least keep an eye on her and make sure she was safe.

Ana noticed Christian and gave him a warm smile to which he returned with a grin making Ana blush all over. She bit her lip and focused her attention back to the treadmill and decided to pick up the pace. Ana was listening to one of her new Audiobooks as she worked out. With seven miles under her belt, Ana hopped off the treadmill and made her way into the locker room to change into her swimsuit; she wanted to cool down by swimming a couple laps.

As Ana emerged from the locker room, everyone stopped and turned to look at her as she walked past everyone to make her way the pool room. Even though she was wearing an extremely modest one piece, it did highlight her curves and elongate her legs. She was carrying her swim cap, googles and a towel. Christian was heading towards the weights when he caught sight of Ana. He instantly looked around and realized that he wasn't the only one who had been engrossed in Ana's effortless beauty.

Christian had an extremely difficult time working out. He was beyond distracted knowing that Ana was in such close proximity to him and half-dressed for the matter. He felt obligated to having a discussion with her about appropriate gym wear attire. He quickly realized that if he dared talk to her about such things, she would probably have him castrated. Christian sat up, emitting an over-exaggerated sigh and decided to join the men who were ogling Ana through the glass of the pool room.

The pool room was brightly lit. The pool consisted of seven lanes with diving blocks on one end. Christian could see that Ana had laid her towel down on one of the diving blocks and he decided to go inside and sit and wait for her. This would send a clear message to everyone else that Ana was his and completely off limits even though he knew that, that was far from the case. With a grin, Christian entered the room and quickly went to sit on the block that was in Ana's lane. He was mesmerized watching her body glide in the water and how when she pulled her arms back, the water rippled down her arms. Also, the way she would turn her head to the side and would open her mouth to take a breath. Her lips formed the perfect "O" shaped and had Christian panting with need. He shook his head from side to side in a failed attempt to clear the direction of where his thoughts were heading.

Ana was on her last lap and once she put her hand on the wall, she saw man's feet. Startled, she lost her grip and somehow managed to bang her arm against the wall. She clutched it close to her chest and rubbed it out trying to ease her current throbbing pain. As the pain started ebbing away, Ana pulled off her goggles and her swim cap, letting her hair fall down her back in a dramatic way. Ana then ran both of her hands through the front of her scalp, to pull her hair back and get it off of her face.

She looked up into her mystery man's face and she rolled her eyes dramatically. _Of course it's Christian,_ Ana thought sarcastically. She looked at the clock ahead and realized that she needed to start heading back to her apartment and get ready for work.

Ana submerged herself under the water, desperately trying to make time stop so she wouldn't have to face the day. Ana was unsure of what to do in regards to Christian. Ana had so many conflicting emotions. On one level she was all let's be best friends and tell each other our secrets and on the second level she wanted to just get away from him for a while in order to at least clear her head. Whenever she was around Christian, Ana was in constant haze of emotions always unclear of what to say and how to feel. She resurfaced in what felt like minutes but was only a mere five seconds. She gripped the sides of the pool and pulled herself out. Christian handed Ana her towel and she quickly wrapped it around herself.

"I think we should seriously consider adding stalker to your list of character traits." Ana said giving Christian a pointed look.

"I will take it into consideration." Christian said with a smirk. "Do you like to swim?" Christian adds.

"I love it. I feel completely untouchable and extremely powerful whenever I'm in the water. When I was younger I used to believe that I was actually born a mermaid but had to become human in order to save my kingdom."

Christian looks Ana with raised eyebrows. "Well it looks like one of us was fortunate enough to be gifted with an extremely vivid imagination."

Ana shrugs her shoulders and walks into the locker room. Christian gives pause before deciding to follow her into the locker room.

"We should also add peeping tom." Ana says over her shoulder as she puts her swim gear inside her bag that was resting on the sitting bench. She picks up her bag and slings to side strap across her torso and picks up her shoes. She decides to head into the elevators; sopping wet, still dressed in her swimsuit and towel while also being completely barefoot.

Christian stares at Ana in complete amazement, flabbergasted by her confidence. "You know, you should dry your hair and change, you could catch a cold." Christian decides to chastise Ana.

"I'll keep that in mind for next time, dad." Ana says defiantly.

"You are one extremely frustrating woman." Christian mumbles under his breath; knowing full well that Ana could hear him.

Ana tenses as the words leave his mouth and resolves with a hair flip in his direction and stomps to the elevator. She crosses her arms over her chest and pouts when Christian enters closely behind her. The tension between them was palpable.

After arriving on Ana's floor, Christian once again made sure that Ana made it safely home. As she began to unlock her door and head inside, Christian made his way to the elevator to head up to his apartment.

"Christian, wait!" Ana had called out suddenly causing Christian to halt in his tracks.

"Yes, Ana?" Christian said impassively.

"Would you like to accompany me for lunch today? I mean, could we go to lunch together? Wait no, that wasn't right. I mean…we're friends, right? Friends get lunch together often. So I think that you and I should get lunch…today." Ana flushed bright red in embarrassment and closed her eyes, hoping the ground would swallow her up whole. Ana nervously began to chew her bottom lip, a nervous trait she had acquired.

Christian took two long strides and ended up in front of Ana. He pulled her bottom lip out of her teeth's grasp, hearing her breath hitch from his sudden contact. They were so close that he felt her body shiver and realized she was probably cold and he knew that if he kept her waiting she would most likely catch a cold.

Christian stroked the side of her face and almost blurted out yes but then quickly realized the plans he had with Audrey, instantly souring his mood. At least he would finally be done with her once and for all today.

"I'm sorry, Ana. I have an important business meeting with a bunch of suits today that I have attend during my lunch hour."

Ana's face immediately fell but she tried to recover it with a smile but failed miserably.

"I'm available for lunch tomorrow if you're free." Christian offered hesitatingly.

Ana nodded her head feverishly.

Christian smiled slightly and emanated a sigh while he pressed his forehead against Ana's and closed his eyes, inhaling Ana's scent.

"Tomorrow," he breathed hopeful that everything would work out the way that he wanted.

"Tomorrow," Ana said with an airy voice.

Ana waved goodbye as Christian left. She closed the door in her apartment and leaned her head against the frosted glass as she turned the lock, effectively securing her home. She took a deep breath and pushed off the door and headed to her washroom. She dropped her towel on the floor and reveled in the feeling of the heated tiles against her toes. She made her way to the shower and turned on all the dials and stood directly under the shower head as it cascaded scalding hot water down her body. She ran her fingers through her hair, effectively washing away the chlorine. She poured a large dollop of her orange scented shampoo and massaged into her scalp. It felt extremely therapeutic as Ana massaged away any remaining tension she held from her previous encounter with Christian. She would probably have to look into therapy in order to keep up with him. He had the potential to drive even the sanest person mad.

Ana stepped out of the shower the moment she was done and shivered at the sudden cold rush of air. She wrapped herself in her oversized fluffy white robe and went on to drying her hair with her towel. She took a round brush and her blow dryer and decided to blow out her hair. She wanted to look relaxed yet still polished. Once her hair was dry and styled she put on a light layer of makeup, solely focusing on defining her eyes with mascara and accentuating her lips with a dark rosy gloss. Ana trudged her way into her closet and pulled out a textured hunter green dress with buttons all the way down the front of the dress. The matching sash was tied tightly around her waist and pulled to the side. Ana finished off the look with a bright red pumps with an ankle strap.

Ana headed into the kitchen and made herself a bagel and ate it in haste. She wiped her lips clean and quickly ran to the washroom to brush her teeth and re-apply her gloss. Ana took the gloss and threw it into her bag; she also grabbed a bottle of water and headed out towards the elevator and to her car.

Ana quickly arrived at the office since traffic wasn't too heavy, which was odd since it was Monday. Ana got into her elevator and headed up to the thirty-second floor where her current office was located. She by-passed her assistant's office; Zoe Emerson and gave her a brief smile and good morning before heading into her office. Zoe was the most perfect assistant Ana could ever hope for. She was a very genuine person and that was something Ana greatly admired about her. She considered Zoe a friend of hers and every Thursday they would have lunch together as long as Ana didn't have a lunch meeting scheduled.

"Good morning, Ana. I hope you had a pleasant weekend," Zoe said as she came into Ana's office to run through her schedule for the day.

"I did, thank you Zoe. I hope yours was wonderful too." Ana said as she placed her bags on the floor and sat in her chair.

Ana pulled out her planner and gestured for Zoe to take a seat so they could run through the schedule for the day.

"So first things first, you have a conference call with the Chinese at ten which should be over by eleven thirty seeing as though you have a meeting with Mr. Ben Swanson and then after that you have your free lunch hour and lastly you have a video conference call with the people in Paris to go over the company specs for which three hours have been allotted to go over that."

Ana rubbed her face in anguish. She knew she didn't have a lot to do today but she knew that it was just going to take quite a bit of her time and she had started to feel queasy. She sighed and nodded her head in agreement.

"Push back my meeting with Mr. Swanson to my lunch hour and we can go to that nice Italian restaurant on the corner. Also, tomorrow block out my entire lunch hour, no calls, and meetings; absolutely nothing is to be scheduled. I won't be in the office. Thanks, Zoe that will be all." Zoe quickly scribbled down Ana's new note and nodded her head in agreement and quickly headed back to her desk to make the necessary arrangements.

Ana opened her email account and began to sift through her emails looking for anything critically important. It was all a bunch of nonsense emails and there was nothing urgent to attend to. Ana had decided to continue to scroll downwards until she stumbled across an interesting sender; Mr. C. Grey. Ana quickly clicked on his email, her curiosity piqued.

* * *

 **From:** Christian Grey

 **Subject:** Unwelcome Invaders

 **Date:** October 5, 2014 08:27

 **To:** Anastasia Steele

Miss Steele,

I hope you don't mind the intrusion at work but I just wanted to apologize for being unable to accept your lunch proposal. I'm greatly looking forward to tomorrow.

Have a pleasant day.

Christian Grey

CEO, Grey Enterprise Holdings, Inc.

Ana was appalled that he was able to attain her work email. She decided to email him back and mess with him a little bit.

* * *

 **From:** Anastasia Steele

 **Subject:** Unwelcome Stalkers

 **Date:** October 5, 2014 09:42

 **To:** Christian Grey

Dear Mr. Grey,

Your invasion of privacy holds no bounds. You should consider seeking help for your creepy antics. I wouldn't be surprised if you already have my social security number on file.

No need for the apologies, Mr. Grey. I, too, have decided to schedule an impromptu to business meeting. So I will be way too busy to be pining over the sting of your rejection.

Anastasia Steele

CEO, Steele Corporation Industries

Ana smiles as she sends off the email, eagerly waiting his response which comes instantaneously. Ana choked back on her water as she read his subject header, wondering what in the world would render such topic.

* * *

 **From:** Christian Grey

 **Subject:** Strapping young men

 **Date:** October 5, 2014 09:45

 **To:** Anastasia Steele

Miss Steele,

Who are you meeting during your lunch meeting?

Christian Grey

CEO, Grey Enterprises Holding, Inc.

* * *

 **From:** Anastasia Steele

 **Subject:** Strapping young men and arrogant stalkers

 **Date:** October 5, 2014 09:47

 **To:** Christian Grey

Mr. Grey,

I do not believe in mixing business with please.

P.S. I'm sure your shocking and jealousy hold no bounds. You'll probably know within the reminder of the hour.

Anastasia Steele

CEO, Steele Corporation Industries

* * *

 **From:** Christian Grey

 **Subject:** Friends don't let friends go home with strangers

 **Date:** October 5, 2014 09:48

 **To:** Anastasia Steele

Miss Steele,

I must say that I'm hurt. I was merely just curious as to who you were seeing on the off chance that this person is not a very honorable man and could very easily try to take advantage of you. I'm only trying to look out for you. Friends look out for each other, Ana.

Christian Grey

CEO, Grey Enterprise Holdings, Inc.

Ana was fuming.

* * *

 **From:** Anastasia Steele

 **Subject:** Quit while you're ahead

 **Date:** October 5, 2014 09:51

 **To:** Christian Grey

Mr. Grey,

I can very much take care of myself. I also do not go home with strangers and if I did it would be absolutely none of your business; friends or not. I am a grown woman with my own company. I'm more than capable of making my own grown up decisions. Let me remind you that I do not mix business with pleasure.

I sincerely thank you for caring for my well-being but it's not necessary.

Anastasia Steele

Strong CEO, Steele Corporation Industries

* * *

 **From:** Christian Grey

 **Subject:** Frustrating women

 **Date:** October 5, 2014 09:52

 **To:** Anastasia Steele

You are on infuriating woman. I was only trying to be nice.

Christian Grey,

CEO Grey Enterprise Holdings, Inc.

* * *

Ana huffed out in anger and closed her laptop for a moment. She knew that Christian was just being nosey and not exactly looking out for Ana's well-being. Ana re-opened her computer and glanced back over the emails they sent to each other. Ana instantly started feeling queasy with what she considered to be guilt. She ran out of her office and into the nearest bathroom and started vomiting profusely. Zoe heard her boss in distress and quickly ran in after her. Ana instructed Zoe to go and find her a tooth brush and tooth paste. Once Zoe left, Ana tried to pick herself up and pull herself together. She felt another wave of sickness and started to look a bit green. Zoe returned and pressed her hand against Ana's forehead and explained that Ana was burning up rather quickly.

Ana felt too weak to stand and leaned against Zoe for support. Zoe was able to take Ana to the nearest chair and sit her down while she went hunting for some Gatorade. Ana thanked her and decided to call her father so that way he could step in and Ana wouldn't need to cancel any of her meetings. Ana's father, Ray, readily agreed and encouraged Ana to go straight home and get some rest.

Ana somehow managed to gather enough energy and took a cab home; she wasn't in the right place to drive. The cab pulled up into the front of Escala and Ana paid the cab driver and slowly got out of the car. As she struggled to open the lobby door of Escala, she saw Christian and Audrey and their parents heading straight towards her.


	10. update

**Author's note.**

Hey guys, I've recently had a death in my family. I know I was supposed to post Saturday and start doing the same on my other story today but I just haven't really been able to. I'm completely sorry for not putting up my chapters. I hope to be back before the end of the week. I'll try to post something during the week but it doesn't look very likely. I'm sorry to leave you all hanging like that. I just need to focus on my family right now, I hope you all can understand. I'm not abandoning either of my stories so no need to fret.

I'll be back soon, I promise.


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